FOLLOWING West Devon's rejection of a directly-elected mayor in last month's referendum, the borough council is working full throttle to modernise its decision-making structure.
By May, changes at the council will be complete and seven committees will have been formed to carry out the authority's business.
They will be economic, leisure and development; environment and health; future development and housing; planning and licensing; policy and resources; overview and scrutiny and the standards committee.
Cllr Dick Eberlie, who campaigned in the recent referendum for the new committee system, said: 'The council has simply got to recognise the popular demand for improvement in our working.
'I'm certainly determined that we should make the new system operate more effectively and be more accountable to tax payers.
'But this means that we have got to slim down and to get it right this time,' he said.
The new standards committee will promote and maintain high standards of conduct throughout borough, town and parish councils in West Devon.
The committee will include two members of the public — and there is just one day left for applicants to get their forms in for consideration.
Of the other groups, the new economic and development committee will be responsible for business development and regeneration, to include the fields of sports, commercial, tourism and the arts.
The environment committee will look after public health and safety, including services like public conveniences, refuse and recycling collections, food safety, pest control and street cleaning.
The future development committee will have responsibility for forward planning, the homeless, housing aid, advice, policy and strategy.
The planning committee will continue to determine planning applications and will include responsibility for historic building conservation and community landscaping.
The policy committee will define the council's objectives and priorities, and implement policies, while the overview committee will scrutinise decisions made by the other committees and review and develop policy.
The new system is expected to give committees greater financial authority and lead to a reduction in council working groups.
The mayor of West Devon will still chair meetings of the full council and represent the authority at civic and ceremonial events.
The chairman and vice-chairman of the new committees will be appointed at the council's annual meeting in May.